Sundry Manipulations
by Riku-Rocks
Summary: Sephiroth forces Leon to make a decision in a most brutal manner. Little did either of them know what the outcome of their confrontation would lead to; Riku will break before he will be manipulated again, but manipulation comes in many forms. Post KHII.
1. An Unfair Battle of Wills

_**Rated M:**__ for violence and dark themes._

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any rights to Kingdom Hearts or any of the Final Fantasy characters mentioned in this story, nor am I making any sort of profit from this._

_This is for Jediempress, who wanted to see some more twisted Sephiroth from me, doing something terrible to Leon. I hope you all enjoy it and thank you for reading.

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_**An Unfair Battle of Wills:**_

Leon walked home late into the evening as had become common recently. The winter months meant more power and fuel being used to warm homes and entertain said homes occupants, as they did not want to be in the cold outdoors. Water froze and cracked conduit or burst pipes. More foods and beverages were generally consumed. The orphanage and hospital needed more supplies. The list of things that the reconstruction committee needed to do kept growing longer.

The scarred man recalled that Cid had asked him to check some things on the town central computer system the next day, and that caused him to frown. Not because there was probably yet another glitch in the system, but because the town computer always made him think of its old ruler, who in turn taught Riku everything he knew.

Normally, thinking of Riku caused Leon to smile, but he realised suddenly that with all of the extra work he had been putting in around their rapidly growing town, he had certainly been neglecting his young lover. The steel-eyed man knew that Riku understood, that was actually one of the many things that he loved about the turquoise-eyed boy, but he never wanted Riku to think that he was second to the town's needs in Leon's mind, or that he was looked upon as another self-imposed burden, like the reconstruction.

Leon also knew that this was Riku's first relationship. Whereas some things felt common or expected to the steel-eyed man, they were fresh and surprising for the teenager. The scarred man sighed. He really needed to start paying more attention to the silvered adolescent. He needed to figure out a way to take the boy on real dates that would actually feel like dates, while not making it clear to the public that he was in fact dating the minor. Things would be easier when the boy turned eighteen, but that was almost two years away and anyway, no one ever said that love was supposed to be easy…Leon certainly did not believe it was.

The steel-eyed man's attention snapped back to his surroundings when the road he was cutting through suddenly grew pitch black. He strained his eyes to scan the area, but found only darkness. Then, what he wanted to call light but what his mind could only think of as a brilliant darkness, if such a thing existed, cracked through the blackness.

Within a few seconds, the road was in the normal silvery darkness of the night, but there were five orbs of the brilliant darkness surrounding Leon. He drew Revolver as they honed in on him, but was only able to deflect three.

Leon clenched his teeth and breathed in heavily as pain coursed through his back and hip, where the dark orbs had struck him. Then he heard a faint sound behind him, like the beating of a wing. He turned to face the man cautiously.

"Sephiroth…what are you doing?" The Gunblade wielder did not want to fight the winged man. Not only was he unlikely to survive, but even if he did, he did not think he could destroy Riku's father and live with himself. Much like the reconstruction project, he knew Riku would understand, but he did not want to do that to him either way. He knew that any outcome to a battle between himself and the winged man would lead to pain for the adolescent. "Think of Riku…"

"I am." As an eerie smirk touched pale lips, walls of flame arose on either end of the small road. Between those and the stone walls of the building on either side, the two men were effectively trapped.

Then the silvered man lunged and everything became a blur of instincts and reactions for the sable haired man.

Masamune was too long to allow Leon to use the blade of Revolver as well as he could, and Sephiroth moved too quickly for Leon to have time to aim in a shot from the weapon's gun functions.

While Leon was an impressive and highly skilled dualist, he was only human. The winged man was so much more and that difference showed clearly, when the scarred man soon had several injuries while having only gotten in one clean strike against his powerful opponent.

The silver-haired man leaped back for a moment, and Leon raised revolver and fired, the aim was somewhat wild, and only struck the taller man's shoulder. After releasing a small growl, Sephiroth raised his other hand as the sky darkened, then several meteors rained down, pummelling Leon painfully.

After the last dive to avoid being struck by another meteor, Leon barely had time to stand before Sephiroth attacked again with an omni-slash manoeuvre. Despite his efforts, Leon could not block most of the strikes. The blows were not strong enough to take the scarred man out, just enough to injure him and draw a fair amount of blood.

The steel-eyed man stumbled back and connected with a flame pillar, falling forward with a pained gasp before bringing up Revolver to block another strike. The second struck him soundly.

Sephiroth grabbed the sable-haired man's jacket and pulled him up; Leon managed to fit in a slash across the winged-man's leg. The sable-haired man used the brief distraction to cast a familiar spell, "Firaga!"

The silvered man leaped backwards; however, the spell still struck its mark. Leon attempted to follow up with a light column, but Sephiroth recovered too quickly with a spell of his own, "Heartless Angel."

The former SeeD felt nearly each once of energy he possessed drain from his body, only to be replaced by a cold and steady pain as he collapsed.

Heavy footsteps approached him steadily, but in no obvious hurry. Leon snapped back into full consciousness as a white-hot pain shot into his thigh. He sat up as well as he could, feeling more pain until he realised that the tip of Masamune was still in his thigh, the sword slowly twisting as he glared up at Sephiroth with a hiss.

Sephiroth's voice was deep and even as he calmly spoke. "I believe you are ready to listen now."

After narrowing his eyes further at those words, Leon suddenly realised something. Sephiroth was not trying to kill him or even torture him; he was just showing him what he could do. There was only one reason the scarred man could think of for him to do that. "What do you want?"

That hint of a smirk returned to the cruel man's face as the sword stopped moving in the younger man's flesh. "I want you to leave Riku."

Shock and a cold sense of dread began to fill the steel-eyed man. "I'd never hurt him-"

"You will," Sephiroth interrupted. "You will break his heart…or _I_ will. However, know that in order for me to do that, I will have to break him both internally and externally. What I have done tonight is only a taste of what he will suffer if you do not do this."

The scarred man suspected it was pointless to try to talk sense to this man, but he decided to try once for Riku. "He's your son. He-"

"The persona that desired the child has long since died," the silvered man interrupted again as the sword began to twist once more. "I do not wish to repeat myself; make your decision. Either you will leave him, as coldly as we both know you can be, or I will take the matter into my own hands, after he will feel the anguish of your death."

Leon hissed again, but the pain in his heart far outweighed the pain in his body as he sensed the truth in the other man's words. Once again, he was helpless to defend that which he loved the most. He thought that at least if chose the first option, then he might be able to try to protect Riku from afar.

His determination must have shown, for Sephiroth spoke again icily. "I will know if you try to break him gently or warn him in anyway, and then I shall kill you and break him myself."

Leon noted that Sephiroth still had not said anything about trying to help the boy without letting him know. Of course, he surmised that after this confrontation, the silvered man was probably completely confident that the former SeeD was not a threat. Leon only hoped that Sephiroth was wrong. He would die to save Riku.

…But first, he would have to live long enough to guard the boy when he needed it.

Leon never hated any villain or himself more than in that moment. "I'll do it."

The heartless angel might as well have torn Leon's heart out as he smirked, dropped a Mega Elixir, and took to the skies before disappearing in a flash of darkness.


	2. Breaking Two Hearts At Once

_**Breaking Two Hearts At Once:**_

Leon woke up holding a comfortable warmth and slight weight against his chest. He tilted his head down slightly and smelled Riku's hair as he ghosted his fingers across the boy's abdomen before reinforcing his hold on the svelte body against his own. Then the boy made a soft sound and turned in his arms before nuzzling his chest.

The steel-eyed man continued to hold the silvered adolescent and stroke his hair for several minutes as the memories of the previous evening returned to his slowly waking mind.

"_I will know if you try to break him gently or warn him in any way, and then I shall kill you and break him myself."_

The Gunblade wielder did not know if this was to imply that Sephiroth would be watching him, or if it meant the atrocious man had learned of the bond that he had shared with Riku since the child's birth, and had managed to utilise it well enough to determine his son's emotional state. In either case, he would not endanger Riku if it could be helped.

"…_Either you will leave him, as coldly as we both know you can be, or I will take the matter into my own hands, after he will feel the anguish of your death."_

Leon hated that the only way he could think of to protect his young lover was to follow Sephiroth's directions. He knew that if Riku were heartbroken, the boy would become even more despondent and introverted then he was upon his arrival in Radiant Garden. Zack would surely never leave the boy alone, and Cloud and Aerith would naturally support Zack. The others cared about Riku as well, especially Cid and Tifa had developed soft spots for the teenager, and Yuffie had promised Sora to always try to cheer the silvered adolescent in his absence…they would all be concerned and would keep an eye on the depressed boy. Leon would know to keep an eye out for Sephiroth, and Cloud would know if the man stayed close to town…the question was, could the nightmare get to Riku under those conditions or would he be safe?

Riku stirred slightly, and the scarred man realised that he had been holding the boy much tighter than he had intended to. He stroked the teen's hair and back soothingly and made an odd, comforting sound in his throat that he had not been aware he was capable of producing until after he fell for the boy in his arms. 

The turquoise-eyed boy moved one of his own arms, which had been pressed against his boyfriend's chest, to snake around Leon before he nestled against him further as he placed a kiss to his clavicle. His voice was a barely-audible murmur when he asked, "Bad dream…?"

Leon had to resist the urge to kiss the boy and tell him to ignore anything odd he might say or do over the next couple of days. He made a noncommittal sound; "I'm fine now."

"You sure…?" Riku was tracing light, random patterns into the bare skin of Leon's side as he shifted his head to look up at the man, though Leon did not look down at him. "You were pretty beat up when you came home last night…what-"

"I said I'm fine, Sydän." The scarred man cursed himself mentally for using the name of endearment without thinking. He did not want Riku to worry, but he already had to hurt to the boy later, he did not want to start now when he did not have to…when he was not even sure what to do yet. If only he had not taken that Mega-Elixir, it would have been obvious who had inflicted the unaltered damage on him. However, his only thought at that time was to get to Riku, to make sure he was truly safe. "…You healed me." Leon wished the boy knew how much.

"Okay…" The silvered adolescent placed another soft kiss against his chest and fell silent. His body was slightly tense and Leon could practically hear the cogs in the boy's head moving. Clearly, Riku could tell something was out of place with his boyfriend; Leon wondered what he thought it was.

Some time passed, Leon could not tell how much, before the sun broke through the crack between the bedroom curtains. Riku placed another kiss against his chest and then murmured, "I'm going to get an early start today… You should get some more rest…"

The teenager rolled away gracefully, and then slid his hand across Leon's arm as he stood; giving the man's hand a gentle squeeze before he silently padded to the dresser. The scarred man could swear his heart was squeezed instead. 

"I'll see you later, Squall…" Riku quietly left the room with his clothes; he had not raised his head once.

Steel blue eyes squeezed closed for a moment. Leon knew he was going to have to do it sooner rather than later…waiting would only hurt both of them more. 

The Gunblade wielder was distant and irritable all day. He knew he was ignoring or snapping at his friends more than they could easily justify, but he could not bring himself to care about that at the moment. He repeatedly heard someone fallowing him just out of sight whenever he was walking between areas by himself, and could have even swore he heard a large wing flap once or twice. He also heard Yuffie and Tifa talking about how moody Cloud was as well that day, and knew that Sephiroth was indeed keeping an eye on the situation.

Leon felt as though he were running on autopilot for most of the day, and continuously tried to think of other ways to solve his dilemma. He could not think of a way to handle the situation that would not end with the boy he loved being hurt in some way. 

Therefore, even though he still did not want to, Leon found himself approaching the town's central computer room early that evening, where Riku was still bound to be, most likely alone.

The turquoise-eyed boy glanced at Leon with a hesitant smile, for he had not escaped his boyfriend's cold and harsh attitude that day, when the former SeeD entered the room, "Hey…you done for the day?"

"Almost," replied the scarred man, his expression never changing even as his nerve wavered and his heart ached. 

Riku nodded slowly, clearly sensing that something was wrong. "I'm almost done here too." He glanced at the sable-haired man once more before returning his eyes to the monitor before him. "Are you a-…er, Are you okay?"

"No." Leon answered honestly, and before he even had time to think on what to say next, Riku had turned to look at him in concern. "Actually, I have to talk to you…"

"Okay…" Riku raised one hand to the keypad and had the computer saving his work and shutting down within seconds. His full attention never left Leon. "What is it?"

"I-" Sephiroth's warnings ran through the scarred man's mind for what must have been the thousandth time. He kept his voice and face completely neutral. "I'm leaving you."

The teen's abnormally expressive eyes fell blank for the first time that Leon had ever seen. It was as though the boy disappeared for a few countless seconds while his empty shell simply stared at Leon as those cold words set in. Then, those eyes shifted slightly and emotions started flooding in…pain, confusion, denial, anger, grief, helplessness, uncertainty, shame, self-depreciation… Leon had to look away before they both drowned in those feelings…before he had to watch the boy's heart break.

This must have snapped the silvered adolescent out of his shock to an extent, as his soft voice finally spoke the question Leon had dreaded the most. "Why…?"

The former SeeD still did not meet the boy's eyes, and still did not drop his cold and stoic façade. "I don't think you'll be able to understand…you're just a kid. I never should have even gotten involved with someone so young to begin with. I have to watch myself constantly, hold myself back…and it's never going to be much better. Sure, you'll be legal in a couple years, but you'll still be ten years my junior and even when or if anyone can look past that, two guys still can't just walk down the street with any obvious signs that they're together around here…"

"You," Riku swallowed thickly, his voice was wispy, as though he were not all there. "You said none of that mattered…you said-"

Leon clenched his fists so tightly he knew he was cutting into himself. He doubted Riku would notice in his current state, and even if he did, he would not be able to interpret it correctly at that time. "I said it didn't matter as long as we love each other."

"I-" Through the corner of his eye, Leon saw the teen's head drop and turn away. "You…don't love me anymore…?"

Now Leon's jaw was clenched as well. "No."

"I don't-" Riku took a shaky breath and it was obvious that he was struggling to hold back his tears. "I don't believe you…"

It took all of the steel-eyed man's resolve not to try to comfort his young love. "I said I didn't expect you to understand…you just don't know that much about life yet. People fall in love without warning and they can fall out of it too. It just happens…"

"It doesn't _just happen_," the silvered adolescent interjected mournfully. It was clear that he was crying silently now, and he was holding onto the computer desk behind him for support. "I didn't just wake up in love with you one day…it happened over time. I just didn't realise what was happening until- You- I-"

The Gunblade wielder interrupted before the boy could break his resolve, which he was dangerously close to. "You have to have noticed that I'm been distancing myself lately. I wasn't sure at first either, but now I am. This is simply how it is." 

Riku's face was still downcast, with his long bangs veiling his eyes; however, Leon could see his tears falling along his delicate jaw line now. The boy's voice was even softer than it had been and possessed a hollow quality when he spoke again. "Zack's coming…he c-can tell something's wrong."

The scarred man was not sure how to reply to that. He had not wanted to speak to the boy's godfather so soon; dealing with Riku's quiet suffering was hard enough. He doubted he could keep up this charade in the face of Zack's anger and disappointment as well, but he knew he deserved anything his friend might say about the situation. 

Before Leon could think of a response, Riku spoke again, his voice thick and strained. "You should leave… I'm not up for a confrontation right now…"

Even as he nodded and slowly left the room, something about those parting words struck Leon. It was hard to think through all that he was feeling and the desire to tell Riku the truth of the matter. However, he had a feeling that statement was more significant than the boy knew. 

It would be nearly a week before Leon would know just what that significance was.


	3. Even The Best Laid Plans

_**Even The Best Laid Plans:**_

Leon walked home from the Bailey slowly. He knew that it was well after midnight, but he had not been in any rush to return home for the past week.

The scarred man had not spoken to Riku since that evening in the computer room, and had only seen him at a distance since then, but that was enough for him to know that he had succeeded in his unwanted goal of breaking the teen.

As the scarred man had expected, Zack had been incensed by the cruel way in which he had broken it off with Riku, and had not spoken to him since the impending argument, which Cloud and Tifa had to step in on before it turned physical. After that, the violet-eyed man had kept his focus on Riku, as had Cloud and Aerith. The others seemed incredibly concerned about the boy as well and often whispered amongst each other only to stop speaking when Leon came within earshot.

From what the steel-eyed man could gather, the silvered adolescent had scarcely slept, eaten, or spoken since they last spoke. The teen kept his head bowed further than before, his shoulders hunched more, and his eyes were always down. He also appeared paler and slightly thinner to Leon, although the man never saw him properly enough to tell.

Leon could only imagine how hard this was for the boy. He himself knew the truth and he was still taking the break up harder than he had ever taken one before. Everything reminded him of Riku; of how much he missed the teen...and of how he failed him. He was not sleeping either, only ate out of necessarily, and found the simple act of breathing difficult, as the painful weight that had settled in his chest seemed to fight against it.

While every inhale held the pain of loss, every exhale held a silent curse against Sephiroth. Leon now hated the One-Winged Angel with every fibre of his being…he despised himself almost as much.

Although the silvered man never made his presence obvious to anyone, the scarred man learned that he was still in Radiant Garden when he overheard Reno talking to Yuffie about Cloud. Leon had the suspicion that the Turk intended for him to overhear it and had tried to speak the ex-SOLDIER alone, however, Zack, Tifa, or Riku where always with Cloud when he could find him. The first two were still rather hostile toward Leon and the former SeeD did not have the heart to ask Cloud for a moment while Riku was with him.

Leon shook these thoughts as he heard someone breathing, heavy and broken as though they were crying or injured, in the shadow between some buildings. He walked towards the source of the sound carefully and alert, not wanting another ambush but feeling the need to check out the distressing sounds.

The closer he got, the more Leon felt that something was wrong. He hurried his pace and heard a shuffling sound in the dark space before the air felt thick and charged. The air quickly cleared and the sound vanished as it did. When the former SeeD arrived in the alley, it was empty.

The Gunblade wielder walked in further, deciding he should take a closer look. He spun around when he heard the distinct sound of a large wing flapping, but the sound disappeared just as the previous one had. He cursed silently and clenched a fist until he felt his nails cut into his palms, knowing he had been a fool to think Sephiroth would truly leave the boy alone.

A shimmer on the ground caught Leon's eye as he turned to leave the alleyway. His heart clenched tighter than his fist when he realised what he was seeing. He quickly grabbed the item and simply stared at it in his hand for a brief moment, unable to think.

His Griever ring lay in his palm. It was still on the chain that Riku had worn it on since the day Leon gave it to him, along with a small charm that Riku had acquired during his travels. The boy had not taken the chain off before. A few stray memories of one week ago fell into place.

"_I will know if you try to break him gently or warn him in any way..."_

"_You should leave… I'm not up for a confrontation right now…"_

Suddenly, the scarred man realised that not only had he been lead into a trap, but he had pushed Riku into it as well. Lowering his gaze, the steel-eyed man realised the necklace had been resting on a small slip of paper. With a sense of foreboding, he picked this up as well.

_The ends don't always justify the means and the road to darkness is paved with good intentions. I should know. Maybe this time it will be worth it all. You aren't forgiven, but I love you. Don't interfere. I'm sorry._

Leon was not sure how long he stared at the short missive before some rapid footsteps drew his attention. He looked up just in time to see Zack stop in his tracks. The ex-SOLDIER stared at the former SeeD with a mix of anger and fear in his eyes.

Violet eyes flicked to the items Leon was holding. "Riku's gone…"

The scarred man knew it was not a question. He held out the note silently.

Zack approached quickly and took the slip of paper, reading it quickly. Even though anger flashed through his gaze when he looked at Leon again, worry and sorrow still dominated his features. His voice was a harsh whisper when he finally spoke. "What have you done…?"

Another set of footsteps caused the fierce gaze to release Leon's as Zack turned to Cloud when the latter entered the small alleyway. "Sephiroth's gone," the blonde man stated evenly. "He just left. Where's Riku?"

"He just left too," replied the violet-eyed man heavily. "I think Seph had a little help in getting to him." Zack turned to Leon again, moving aside just enough for Cloud to join them.

Azure eyes shifted between the other two men. "What makes you think Sephiroth didn't just take advantage of the situation? Riku was in a weakened state of mind; it was the perfect time for Sephiroth to act against him."

The raven-haired man silently handed his friend the note. Cloud seemed more disturbed by his friend's silence than anything else. His eyes narrowed once he read the missive and then he settled his gaze on Leon. "What did you do?"

"I thought I was protecting Riku." Steel blue eyes met violet and azure, ashamed, but honest. He turned his gaze to Zack solely. "Did Riku mention that I came home injured the night before I…?"

The former FIRST CLASS nodded bluntly. Leon took a breath and continued. "It was Sephiroth. The damage Riku healed was after a Mega Elixir and a standard Health Potion. He gave me a choice; he was going to kill me and then go after Riku, or I could do what I did. As long as Riku was…broken…then he didn't care."

"That's why he was here before," commented Cloud with a slightly questioning tone. "He was making sure you kept your end of the deal?" He barely waited for Leon to nod before adding, "And you actually expected him to keep his?"

"Why didn't you come to one of us?" demanded Zack. "Even if you stuck to this ridiculous plan, we could have done something if we knew what was going on…we could have kept him safe."

The scarred man's gaze never wavered. "I knew Cloud was aware of Sephiroth's presence and I was aware too. I knew you would stick with Riku once he was hurt. I thought he would be safe this way. I'm sorrier than you'll ever know."

"Of course I wouldn't know," replied Zack heatedly. "I'd have died rather than hurt someone I love. Cloud…I'm going after Ku. You coming with me?"

"Of course," the spiky-haired man pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialled a number quickly. He only had to wait a few seconds before speaking into it. "Reno, its Cloud. …It's late. Look, I need a favour. How soon can you have a chopper ready? …As soon as you can have it ready. …Five people. …We'll be there. Thanks." He glanced to Zack as he put his phone away. "Reno will be ready to take us in less than an hour. We need to meet him at the launch pad."

"Thanks Cloud;" without a word to Leon, Zack turned to leave the alleyway. He paused after a few steps when he realised Cloud had not followed.

The blonde man waited until his friend turned to face him again before speaking. He indicated Leon. "He's coming."

The former FIRST CLASS kept his gaze on Cloud. "I think he's done enough."

"I don't," interject the Gunblade wielder. "You're right to be angry, Zack. This is partially my fault and I'm not asking you to forgive me. Even if I weren't to blame, I would not just stay here when Riku's in danger. I'm either coming with you or I'm following on my own. Either way, I'm going after him."

"We're not just dealing with a hurt kid here," added Cloud, looking between the other two men. "We're dealing with whatever Sephiroth has planned for him."

The raven-haired man's expression turned pensive. "If Seph went through Leon to set this up, then he definitely thought it through." Violet eyes glanced at Leon briefly, "You said he wanted Ku broken…that means he's going to try to manipulate him."

The azure-eyed man nodded, "We don't have time to waste and you'll have to hear everything Leon knows if we're going to try to out manoeuvre Sephiroth."

"He's right," stated Leon. "We aren't going to do Riku any good by dying or fighting each other. You can kick my ass and tell me never to lay eyes on him again once we're done, but we need to work together if we're going to save him and we're wasting time."

Zack watched the Gunblade wielder for a few seconds before nodding. "Come on then. I'll call Aerith on the way and let her know what's going on." The ex-SOLDIER turned on his heel and pulled out his cell phone as he left the alley.

Reno was already at the launch pad and prepping his helicopter when they arrived. An extra couple of unfastened buttons on his shirt were the only signs of his hasty awakening. "'Bout time, yo. Hit that switch when I tell you to…"

Zack approached the launch panel the redhead indicated and waited. Reno continued flipping switches on the helicopter's control panel. "Are we gonna need a demolitions guy for whatever the hell we're doing? 'Cause I can get Rude down here with all of his gear in a few minutes."

"I don't think that will be necessary," commented Zack, who sounded like he was seriously considering the idea. "Thanks, Reno…for all of this."

The Turk waved off the gratitude as he continued his work. "Okay, hit it." He watched a meter on the controls for a moment after Zack flipped the switch and then nodded as he made some adjustments. "So how screwed is Silver in this situation? Does daddy-dearest just want to play house or is this going to be the usual psycho end-of-the-world shite?"

Reno rolled his eyes when all three of the other men stared at him, clearly shocked and impressed. "I observe, yo. Cloud started PMSing just before Leonhart suddenly decided to tear Silver's heart out and stomp on it, and since then, Cloud's been on about Sephiroth and Stone Cold is almost as heartbroken as Riku. Now I get a call from Cloud in the middle of the night, asking me to prep a chopper and Silver isn't with any of you, which means Sephiroth was after the kid and now he probably has him. It doesn't take a genius, yo."

The redhead finished the remaining preparations while the other three stood silent, looking ashamed for not realising what was going on sooner themselves.

"Okay, we're ready, yo. Load up," Reno called as he sat in the pilot's seat and grabbed a headset. He didn't bother looking back as the others piled in. "Where are we going anyway?"

"Midgar," replied both Zack and Cloud at the same time as they strapped themselves in.

Leon waited until they were in the air, and then he told his friends everything. He only hoped that it was enough to get Riku back safely.


	4. An Unexpected Turn of Events

_**An Unexpected Turn of Events:**_

Once Leon had finished his explanation of the past week's events, the helicopter was filled with a heavy silence. The steel-eyed man did not think that Zack had looked so enraged even after he had broken up with Riku, although he assumed that was due to the more pressing matter of being with Riku.

Leon realised that all of that anger was not actually aimed at him when the raven-haired man punched the headrest of the seat next to his. "Why would he do his to Riku? He loved that kid even more than I do…"

Just as the Gunblade wielder was considering speaking, angry violet eyed fixed on him again, "And why would _you _help him do this to Ku? I can see not telling Ku everything, but you broke his heart intentionally because _Sephiroth _told you to! I thought you loved him too."

"Well what can Sephiroth do with Riku?" asked Cloud before either Leon or Zack could speak again. The sable-haired man was thankful for his intervention. They had more important thins to be discussing.

The Gunblade wielder frowned, however, as those words sunk in. He turned his attention to the blonde man. "What do you mean?"

"I mean what Reno meant at the hanger; neither of you even attempted to answer him." Azure eyes moved between Leon and Zack. "Is this just a personal matter with his son, or could Sephiroth use Riku for something more important?"

"I don't know," Zack frowned and shook his had when Cloud looked slightly apologetic at his choice of words. The raven-haired man sighed, and glanced around the helicopter without ever looking at Leon. "Seph always… If he could do this to Ku, then I don't know what he's thinking any more. Since there haven't been any other problems with him and you haven't noticed anything, I'm guessing he simply wants his son back, he just doesn't know of any other way to get him any more."

Leon swallowed and clenched his hands into fists at the new wave of guilt he felt. "Even if that is the basis for this, whatever Sephiroth is planning can't be any good if he wanted Riku broken."

"You should have thought about that before you decided to help break him;" Zack's tone was colder than Leon could recall ever having heard it before.

"Zack;" Cloud jumped in again, his voice holding a firm and determined edge that the steel-eyed man also had never heard before from his friend. "You can't pin so much of this on Leon. I admit what he did was stupid and careless but Sephiroth is the one you should be angry at here, he's the one behind all of this. Leon can't fully understand what Sephiroth's become; he wasn't there when Sephiroth _really _lost it…he wasn't in Nibelheim, he wasn't even on Gaia. …And we should be thankful for that, because he was the one who was there for Aerith, Yuffie, Sora, and Riku when we weren't because of all of that. They wouldn't have made this far without him."

Leon and Zack just stared at the normally brooding man for a moment, both at a complete lost for words. The steel-eyed man had never truly thought about how his past decisions had indeed helped his friends. He had only done what he felt was right and needed at the time. Suddenly, he realised that Zack was not the only one giving him too hard a time about this. As long as Riku came out okay, he decided he could live with the guilt.

Reno called from the cockpit before either Leon or Zack could respond to Cloud's statement. "Zack, get up here, yo. You're gonna want to hear this."

The violet-eyed man was out of his seat immediately, with Leon and Cloud right behind him as he crossed to the cockpit entrance. The raven-haired man leaned over Reno just as the redhead was pocketing his cell phone. "What is it, Reno?"

"I just got a call from Rude, yo. As pissed as he is that I left without him, that wasn't the top of his worries," blue eyes flickered to Zack before returning to the space ahead of the helicopter, "And you know how he is."

The former First Class nodded, "That means whatever he knows is going on is big…probably as big as what we're doing. Did he say what it is?"

The redhead nodded, "He gave me some coordinates that are only a bit off from our planned one, yo. He's gonna meet us there in the other chopper…with Valentine."

Leon's attention latched onto that last comment right away. "Vincent? What was he doing in Radiant Garden? He's supposed to be near Midgar with Reeve…"

"Is Reeve all right?" asked Cloud.

"Reeve's fine and I know, yo." The Turk's tone suddenly shifted, suggesting that the others not interrupt him again. "Reeve's gonna met us when we touchdown. Vincent left Midgar yesterday to get Rude, Cloud, and me. Zack, do you remember that other First Class who caused a lot of trouble before Sephiroth, yo? He had a bunch of clones…?"

"Genesis…" Zack's eyes widened and Leon suddenly felt as though he had swallowed a brick when he saw the expression on the ex-SOLDIER's face. "Don't tell me he's back too. Ku can't face both of them alone…"

"Sorry, yo;" Reno flicked his gaze to Zack and then Leon, before looking out of the cockpit again.

Leon looked down and closed his eyes for a moment. He knew Zack was right. If the two were working together, Riku wouldn't stand a chance alone. "Did Rude say if Vincent had told him anything about what Genesis might want?"

The redhead paused for a moment as though thinking before answering. "Sounds like he's been causing some trouble on this end of the world again; at first Reeve just figured it was another clone, but Vincent checked it out and he's sure it's the real deal, yo. They've also gotten some reports of Sephiroth hanging around the outskirts and some other guy with wings."

Steel-blue eyes darted to Cloud, "There's another hybrid? I thought there were only two successes before Riku was born."

Zack's head turned towards his friends slightly, although his gaze remained on the redhead. "The other success wasn't Genesis. It was Angeal…my old mentor. He wasn't like the others though. Reno, is he the one you're talking about?"

The Turk shrugged lightly; "Could be, yo. The only one I actually knew was Sephiroth. Rude said the third was a big guy with a sword on his back and white wings insteada black like the others'…that sound like your guy?"

The raven-haired man nodded slowly. "That's him. I don't know what he's doing in Midgar though."

"Do you think he's on our side or theirs?" asked Leon. Then the sable-haired man watched as Zack seem to think of something.

"Angeal was always the mediator between Genesis and Sephiroth when the three of them were friends. We don't know that Gen and Seph are working together…maybe Angeal came back because his old role was needed again."

Three pairs of eyes settled on Zack before Reno voiced that question. "So are we stepping in on some sorta angel war, yo?"

"Maybe," Zack sighed.

"Or maybe Sephiroth and Genesis _are _working together," stated Leon. "After what's happened with Riku, I'm not trusting any of them without a damned good reason."

The anger in Zack's eyes, which had receded during the previous conversation, returned as he turned to look at Leon. Steel-blue eyes turned to meet smouldering violet steadily, as Leon was more than prepared to take another verbal lashing form the older man, however, Reno spoke again before either of them could.

"Hey Spiky, didn't Vincent tell you something about one of these guys after they started rebuilding Midgar? I thought Silver mentioned something like that, yo."

Azure eyes blinked as Cloud suddenly found himself the centre of attention. "Yes…that was right after Ku found one of Hojo's J cell canisters. He hadn't known much about Jenova, so he asked Vincent and me about it. I left them for a while when Vincent told Riku about how her cells effected Lucrecia and Sephiroth. I came back to get Ku when we were supposed to head back to meet Zack and Reeve, and as we left he asked Vincent if there were any others…"

After a very brief moment, Zack raised his eyebrows, Squall narrowed his eyes, and Reno made a rolling motion with his hand. "…And?"

"He said the last was waiting until a time when the world needed a hero again," replied the spiky-haired man.

"Someone needs to tell him he missed a few chances there, yo," muttered Reno as he checked his altitude. Zack nodded and then turned back to Cloud.

"So this very well could be some sort of free for all." Violet eyes flickered to Leon, "And now Riku's been lured into it."

Cloud turned to his best friend. "Zack, Leon's already explained his side of this and blaming him won't help us."

"Yeah, you're going to have to stay focused, yo," added the redhead. "Leonhart's not the main issue here."

"We're both here to help Riku," stated Leon evenly, looking over Reno's head to see out of the helicopter. "So drop it and let's help him."

"…And on that note, you guys need to sit back down and strap in," commented Reno. "We're gonna be landing soon."

The three men returned to their previous seats, each deep in thought. Steel-blue eyes shifted to Zack after a moment, and Leon felt his guilt return at his friend's obvious worry. He knew that neither of them would forgive themselves if Riku were hurt.

"Zack," Leon waited until the raven-haired man turned to look at him. "I'm sorry."

Violet-eyes studied him for a moment before sighing, "Just help me get him back and we'll be fine."

The sable-haired man nodded. "…We'll get him back."

The remainder of the trip was silent as each man hoped that was true.


End file.
